Battle for the Blackfeet An interview with Chief Earl Old Person

The walls of Chief Earl Old Person’s office are lined with paintings of past chiefs. Each image features a stoic, commanding face, similar to his own. These portraits reflect the history and pride of the Blackfeet people, a past many on the reservation are forgetting, says Old Person, who has been a cultural guardian and political leader on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation for six decades.

Old Person, now 84, has served on the Blackfeet Tribal Business Council http://tribalnations.mt.gov/blackfeet.asp off and on since 1954, serving as chairman for much of that time. He was ousted in 2008, but reelected in 2012 to a governing body that has since been mired in controversy. In 1978 he was given the title of chief, a lifetime appointment he will take to the grave.

"This is life," he said.

By Justin Franz

Full Story: http://www.flatheadbeacon.com/articles/article/battle_for_the_blackfeet/36143/